AN angry rail passenger was left stranded when the train he was waiting for sped past him - because it was late!

Martin England, 25, looked on aghast as the train failed to stop at Gatley station.

And so began a saga that involved the Rail Regulator and the Rail Passenger Committee.

The First North Western train - which he was relying on to get to an exam in Manchester - should have stopped to pick him up at 12.22pm. But instead it raced past.

Now Martin, who works for an insurance company, has learned that late-running trains that are supposed to stop at small stations like Gatley are being turned into express trains mid-journey to make up lost time.

Martin, from Gatley, who narrowly avoided missing his exam in October, said: ''It could have caused a real problem. It's unacceptable.''

Email complaint

He sent First North Western an email to complain about their service - but it took them more than two months to reply.

He then had to contact the Rail Regulator and the Rail Passenger Committee for North West England before First North Western apologised for the decision to run the train as an express ''to make its time up''.

A letter to him said: ''It is possible that after the event, and with further analysis of the situation, a less disruptive decision could have been made.''

The letter also said that when such a situation occurs First North Western take decisions that will reduce the inconvenience caused to the ''majority of passengers''.

This means that passengers who travel from small stations like Gatley are the main sufferers of delays.

First North Western have offered Martin some compensation for the disruption to his journey - provided he can find the ticket he bought back in October.